The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman • Hacker News Board

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#31

Post by apo » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:22 PM UTC

> What has also struck me about this modern fashion (which goes along with that for self-mutilation by piercing) is that it is almost free of any kind of criticism: on the contrary, there is an almost obsequious acceptance of it, as if to say that you found it aesthetically hideous and deeply savage were to declare yourself an Enemy of the People. ...

Trends with little to no mainstream opposition are fascinating. I'm thinking of things like smoking, disco, the real estate bubble, the dot com bubble, and hairbands. Suddenly, everywhere you look it's been normalized. Given enough time, they're all repudiated - strongly and viscerally.

I wonder if the tattoo will join their ranks.

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#32

Post by vgoh1 » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:28 PM UTC

zaat wrote: post #18

All in all this is pretty hilarious and funny, however >More recently, in what is no doubt a manifestation of the desire to fit in with the majority, even dark-skinned minorities, whose epidermis is unsuited to tattooing, are having themselves tattooed in ever-larger numbers. smells a bit racist and ignorant to me, I mean, tattoos are part of African tribes culture for at least few millennia. https://en.wikipedia.org…

No, I think stating that dark on dark is hard to see is just stating facts. As a former tattoo artist, I can tell you that the more pale, the better the tattoo and especially colors show up.

But comparing modern men to tribesmen, that might be a little...

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#33

Post by thom » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:30 PM UTC

mprev wrote: post #8

oddeyed wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pretty typical for Standpoint. It's a Britsh, culturally conservative magazine, so the default position you might expect is that anything that Her Majesty wouldn't approve of is morally abhorrent

While Standpoint is culturally conservative, the way you've worded it implies that because it is British it necessarily mean that it is culturally conservative. A version of this could equally have appeared in a publication from any English speaking nation. However, the author -- Theodore Dalrymple (not his real name) -- is a particularly interesting character. He is almost exclusively pessimistic about humanity, wit…

Not sure why you’re being downvoted, I see no misinformation here.

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#34

Post by chaseha » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:33 PM UTC

This guy's gotta be a hit at parties

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#35

Post by georgeecollins » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:41 PM UTC

Everyone seems negative about this article but it struck a chord with me. Particularly:

>> It seems obvious to me that if a person feels he has to tattoo himself in order to “express” his difference from others, he must have some difficulty in individuating himself, perhaps indicative (when this difficulty is on a mass scale, as it clearly is) of an individualistic society without individuals.

Young people are almost always the ones who get tattoos. I think because they want to define themselves. One problem is that it is a pretty superficial way to do it. I never thought someone was thoughtful, artistic, caring.. etc. because of their tattoo. The other problem is that you often outgrow how you see yourself as a teen. There is something to be said for being comfortable in your own skin.

But hey-- if you have a tattoo I have no problem with that.

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#36

Post by KUcxrAVrtI » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:49 PM UTC

CodeCube wrote: post #30

ubu7737 wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be perfectly frank: it is our right to be put off by tattoos and the motivations behind them, just as it is your right to have them. Mewling that you are "hated" for your tattoos really just satisfies many of us that you got your tattoo to seem cool, and now you're pouting that most of us don't find you cool.

There's a huge difference between: 1. Not liking something and 2. Going out of your way to write a long article detailing all the shortcomings of those that partake in the thing you don't like. Of course you have the right to dislike tattoos, but that doesn't give anyone the right to tell someone they suck for something they chose because they like it.

> 2. Going out of your way to write a long article detailing all the shortcomings of those that partake in the thing you don't like.

For those able to put words in order that article would take 15 minutes to write and 5 to proof read.

>Of course you have the right to dislike tattoos, but that doesn't give anyone the right to tell someone they suck for something they chose because they like it.

What would you do if the author tattooed that piece on themselves? You now can't tell them they are wrong for hating people with tattoos because it's a tattoo.

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#37

Post by KUcxrAVrtI » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:51 PM UTC

apo wrote: post #31

> What has also struck me about this modern fashion (which goes along with that for self-mutilation by piercing) is that it is almost free of any kind of criticism: on the contrary, there is an almost obsequious acceptance of it, as if to say that you found it aesthetically hideous and deeply savage were to declare yourself an Enemy of the People. ... Trends with little to no mainstream opposition are fascinating. I'…

For health reasons if nothing else. Everything foreign that people have put in their bodies which isn't food or drink turns out to be poison over a long enough time frame.

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#38

Post by pmontra » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:54 PM UTC

georgeecollins wrote: post #35

Everyone seems negative about this article but it struck a chord with me. Particularly: >> It seems obvious to me that if a person feels he has to tattoo himself in order to “express” his difference from others, he must have some difficulty in individuating himself, perhaps indicative (when this difficulty is on a mass scale, as it clearly is) of an individualistic society without individuals. Young people are almost…

> Young people are almost always the ones who get tattoos. I think because they want to define themselves.

Wait until all the old people have tattoos, young people won't tattoo.

My father told me that old guys wore one earpiece when he was little (Milan area, Italy). It took 100 years to become acceptable again. Women had two and still have.

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#39

Post by SolaceQuantum » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:58 PM UTC

ciphershot wrote: post #10

Hey fellow hackers, I think you need to work on your sense of humor. As someone who is inked, I not only found this hilarious, but interesting and well-written, and the author actually has experience with prison tattoos, which makes him more expert than 99% of us, easily. Also, this may shock you, but I'm going to go out on a limb and agree with the author that your tattoo is neither original nor cool, so if that's w…

I'm not inked at all, but I watched a friend get inked to commemorate a friend of his who committed suicide. I think that's extremely cool. :)

Re: The rise of the indelibly-illustrated everyman

#40

Post by ericmcer » Fri, Jul 26, 2019, 5:59 PM UTC

georgeecollins wrote: post #35

Everyone seems negative about this article but it struck a chord with me. Particularly: >> It seems obvious to me that if a person feels he has to tattoo himself in order to “express” his difference from others, he must have some difficulty in individuating himself, perhaps indicative (when this difficulty is on a mass scale, as it clearly is) of an individualistic society without individuals. Young people are almost…

I got a bunch when I was 18-21 and it was for exactly that reason, confusing time, trying to find acceptance and identity etc.

I am in my 30s now and don’t regret them but would never get a public facing one again. Private/easy to cover ones I still consider though, modern humans rarely recieve scars or injuries to mark our life experiences, but we still suffer and go through transformative events. I do like tattoos as reminders of these times, even if the content of the tattoo is unrelated to the event.